Winter travel is not for the faint of heart. It almost always comes with delays, cancelations, unexpected problems, and even danger. I accept this, because I've been conditioned to expect things to go wrong when I travel. This way, I'm not disappointed when shit happens. In the event that everything goes right, then that's an unexpected surprise I can be happy about.

Today there were more than a few upset people... and even one girl who was screaming, crying, and acting generally stupid because of problems going on. By the time she got her cell phone out, handed it to the gate agent, and said "MY DADDY WANTS TO TALK TO YOU" I was very much amused. What? Her daddy has the ability to bend time and space? Shit happened... get over it and move on! Otherwise, do everybody a favor and DON'T TRAVEL IN THE WINTER MONTHS IF THIS KIND OF STUFF FREAKS YOU OUT! It's pretty much inevitable.

On my final flight, I was sat next to a bitch who thinks rules don't apply to her. When they announced for us to turn off all electrical devices for take-off and landing, she felt this obviously meant everybody else. I know this because she fired up her iPod Touch and watched movies and listened to music for the entire trip... from the minute we left the gate right up until the minute we parked. And it wasn't like she didn't understand it was wrong, because she did her best to hide it from the flight attendant every time they walked through the cabin...

Well guess what, you piece of shit? You are nobody special. You have to follow the rules just like everybody else. And one day, when you sit next to a serial killer who thinks that trash like you shouldn't be fucking shit up for the rest of us, I will laugh my ass off when you're found dead in the gutter with that iPod shoved up your stupid ass.

I hate people today.

Probably because I'm hungry. I managed to grab breakfast, but didn't have time for anything else. By the time I got to my hotel, the restaurant had closed. Rummaging through my backpack and suitcase, I managed to find dinner...

A smashed up Rice Krispies Treat I got when I was in Wisconsin, and an old package of smoked almonds I didn't even know I had. Yum. I'm sitting here typing this while eating "dinner" and drinking a complimentary bottle of water. Yes, you read that right, a complimentary bottle of water.

Do you know how often you can find a hotel offering complimentary bottled water?

Almost never!

Score!

And, speaking of score... as I was waiting at the airport for my first of three flights for today, I happened to notice that the iTunes Music Store had just added Sim City!...

Sweet! This is one of my favorite games from back in the day when I actually had time to play video games. I was intrigued. $9.99 is a lot for a mobile game, and I wondered just how watered down it would be to fit on the iPhone. It's a pretty complicated game, so what would they take out? I was dubious about spending $9.99 to find out, but then I started browsing the screen snapshots and saw this...

OMG! THEY HAVE THE ALIEN INVASION?!?

That's all I needed to know! I bought the game and started playing right away (welcome to New Dave City!). From what I can tell, everything I remember is there and better than ever. There's even animated bits, like the smog from my oil-burning power plant...

As I made my way through menu after menu... amazed at how faithful the game was to the original... I noticed that the World Landmarks are even there for you to build! Awesome! As I was paging through the options, I saw they had Neuschwanstein Castle. I thought this was kind of cool, because I've actually been there. So I built it...

And then I noticed that I've been to a lot of the World Monuments in the game. Most of them in fact...

Schloss Neuschwanstein ✓

Arc de Triomphe ✓

Big Ben ✓

Brandenburg Gate ✓

Daibutu

Eiffel Tower ✓

Empire State Building ✓

Gateway Arch ✓

Great Pyramids ✓

Hagia Sofia ✓

Jefferson Memorial ✓

Lincoln Memorial ✓

Melbourne Cricket Ground

Notre Dame ✓

Old State House ✓

Parthenon ✓

Quincy Market/Faneuil ✓

San Francisco City Hall ✓

Sphynx ✓

St. Basil's Cathedral

St. Paul's Catherdral ✓

Statue of Liberty ✓

Sydney Opera House

Taj Mahal

The Alamo ✓

Trafalgar Square ✓

United Nations ✓

United States Capitol ✓

Washington Monument ✓

Westminster Abbey ✓

White House ✓

My mission is now clear. I need to finish off this list! A trip to Australia would get me the Sydney Opera House and the Melbourne Cricket Grounds. Moscow for St. Basil's. India for the Taj Mahal. And, if by "Daibutu" they mean "Daibutsu"... as in the famous Kamakura Daibutsu in Japan... then my list is complete!

So the only one I’ve been to is the Daibutsu and with their horrific spelling I probably wouldn’t have realized that’s what they were talking about. Why must everyone epically fail at romanizing Japanese?

Hurry up with the Taj Mahal> I read that the Indian Government is considering closing it down to the public in the next couple of years. Seems the 3 to 4 million visitors a year are putting a strain on the monument’s well being.

I turn my iPhone to airplane mode, but I never turn mine off, either. A normal operating mp3 player, which is what that turns it into, has no capability of interfering with anything, and it’s one of the stupidest rules out there. Of course, I also don’t put my seatbelt on, either.

Maybe you should be a flight attendant? I love the first graders (pretending to be adults) that hide the electronic devices…it’s like they are being asked to do the BIGGEST MOST HUGE thing ever. Kids….I can’t stand ’em.

I’ve got a better idea: Why don’t you tell her next time that she is potentially compromising the safety of you and everyone else on board by operating the electronic device below 10,000 feet. Tell her that is the “Critical Phase of Flight” and that her little all-important I-touch may be just the thing that disrupts the aircraft’s navigation system. Try that out on her.

I find that most people nowadays don’t feel the rules apply to them. I am appalled at the level of inconsideration shown to others in public places in the USA. I spent a couple of weeks in Tokyo and was amazed by the polite, considerate behavior that I experienced. When I came back to California, I couldn’t figure out how everyone had become so rude and self-centered in only a couple of weeks. I soon realized no one had changed, they have always been rude. I just now noticed how bad they were after spending time in Japan. I gotta get back there soon….

Ginger… Oh yes. Daddy definitely wanted to put the smack-down on the gate agent FOR DOING THEIR JOB! 🙂

Shannon… I have no idea… it’s not that hard! I’ve been to Japan several times, but have never made it to Kamakura. 🙁

Sid… Then if you have an iPhone or iPod Touch, this is the game for you! It’s awesome, and I’m having a blast with it!

Blondefabulous… I heard that too. It’s very sad, but I would hope that you can still walk around it and see the architecture from the outside?

Avitable… So you are blasting music during take-off and landing while the flight attendants are giving instructions and, in the case of an emergency, providing life-saving information??

Chilly… I’m crossing my fingers for serial killer though.

Lewis… She wouldn’t have cared. She’s indestructible and the rules don’t apply to her! I could never be a flight attendant, because I would be bitch-slapping people right and left and get fired. 🙂

Jeff… Japan will do that to you. It’s always a pleasant adjustment when I go there… and a horrifying eye-opener when I get back. Such a shame that the Japanese can be respectful and courteous to others as a way of life, but we’re just the opposite here?

“So you are blasting music during take-off and landing while the flight attendants are giving instructions and, in the case of an emergency, providing life-saving information??”

I’m not sure what instructions and life-saving information they give on your flights, but I’m perfectly capable of knowing how to unbuckle a seat belt, understanding to put the oxygen on myself first, realizing that the lights in the aisles lead to the exits, and understanding that my seat may act as a flotation device without hearing some underpaid obnoxious attendant yell at me on an intercom.

When I stayed at the Comfort Inn in Half Moon Bay, we got a complimentary bottle of water AND a cereal bar. I have never been so excited at the sight of a cereal bar before! It’s the small things that make us happy!

I thought of Daibutsu when I read that too. I have a postcard of the Kamakura Daibutsu that I got from a friend who saw it that is one of my favorites I’ve ever gotten. I photocopied a larger version of it, so I can see it in 2 places in my room. Love the tidal wave story about the statue– that’s just amazing.

I hear you Dave. I had a flight down to Louisville and sat beside a overdose cologne wearing, hard rocking jerkass with a fully loaded iPod. He had to be told multiple times by the flight steward to shut the thing off before take-off and landing.

I wanted to stab him in his eye and jam the ipod in the eye socket. I’m angry like that sometimes.

About the devices- don’t sweat it too much, Dave. The truth is that they have very little chance of affecting a modern jet airliner. They’re banned below 10 because no avionics manufacturer is willing to stick his neck out and certify that his system is safe from ALL devices, it’s a liability thing.

Add a Comment

I love comments! However, all comments are moderated, and won't appear until approved. Are you an abusive troll with nothing to contribute? Don't bother. Selling something? Don't bother. Spam linking? Don't bother.PLEASE NOTE: My comment-spam protection requires JavaScript... if you have it turned off or are using a mobile device without JavaScript, commenting won't work. Sorry.

Your personal information is optional. Email addresses are never shown, and are only used by me if a public reply would be too personal or inappropriate here. The URL link to your web site or blog will be provided, so only fill this in if you want people to visit!